Web Desk: The Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) government said on Sunday it had outlawed the Joint Action Committee over alleged anti-state activities and warned that authorities would continue to enforce the law after weeks of protests disrupted transport and essential supplies across parts of the region.
Speaking at a joint press conference, AJK government spokesperson Chaudhry Guftar Hussain and Deputy Inspector General of Police Irfan Masood Kashfi said the government had exercised restraint for months and consistently favored dialogue to address public grievances before taking action against the group.
The officials said the committee was declared a banned organisation after its activities and narrative allegedly turned against the state.
“As long as the committee raised issues related to public rights, the government supported dialogue,” the spokesperson said. “However, action became necessary after its activities crossed into what authorities described as anti-state conduct and part of an external conspiracy targeting Pakistan and Azad Kashmir.”
The officials did not provide evidence to support the allegation of foreign involvement.
Authorities said sit-ins and road blockades that have continued for the past 36 days severely disrupted the movement of food, medicines and other essential goods across Poonch Division.
According to the government, major highways and link roads remained blocked, suspending normal public movement and creating shortages of food and other necessities in several areas.
The officials said reopening transport routes was both a constitutional and humanitarian responsibility, adding that every attempt by law enforcement agencies to clear roads had been met with resistance.
Police said security personnel came under fire while attempting to reopen blocked roads in several locations.
According to the officials, security teams clearing roads in Shujaabad were fired upon from nearby forested areas, injuring law enforcement personnel. In Arja Jhandala, authorities said gunfire struck a bulldozer engaged in clearing a roadblock, wounding its operator. Security forces also came under fire while evacuating the injured worker, they added.
The government further accused members of the banned committee of attacking trucks transporting food supplies, looting cargo and siphoning diesel from vehicles, describing the incidents as inconsistent with peaceful protest.
The spokesperson said authorities had received reports that organizers planned to place women and children at the front of demonstrations as human shields and compel them to participate in sit-ins while carrying copies of the Quran and white flags.
The government condemned any attempt to use religious symbols during confrontations, saying such actions would violate the sanctity of the Quran and would not be permitted.
Officials also alleged that the banned committee had urged school and college students to participate in protests scheduled for July 13 while wearing their uniforms and planned to place students at the front of a long march toward Muzaffarabad on July 15.
The committee did not immediately respond to the government’s allegations.
The government said the schedule for the upcoming Azad Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly elections would remain unchanged despite the unrest.
Officials said all administrative and security preparations had been completed to ensure that the elections are held on schedule in a free, fair, transparent and peaceful manner.
The government urged residents to reject what it described as inflammatory propaganda, rumors and divisive narratives, and called on voters to participate responsibly in the democratic process.
Authorities said maintaining peace, protecting public welfare and enforcing the rule of law would remain their top priorities as security operations continue across the region.
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